New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-06-16
A SERIES OF FAILURES.
M ~ CHICAGO MARKED BY DISASTER.
vrpN1spED BY THE WHEAT CLIQUE TO AID
Asy,w g. co. HELD IN BANK BY LEGAL
ppocyss-A DAY OF EXCITEMENT
....ur, az rp AnE

SsnN
rnsu.w co. HELD IN BANK BY Legal
ppocEss-A DAY OF EXCITEMENT
IN THE BOARD OF TRADE
,sY rELEGR,pn TO THE TRIBUNE
c,uc.Go. June 15.-There was coun0i' Nv s"'
.an on Exchange National Bank tfls morning.
2. Ian at o'clock. There were present 'oo
,y;I,sbre of Cincinnati, mlddie-siZeu s""'A,
-,,h left eve that looks sinister because Oh
rnnatural droop. and Eggleston' hersl"w
..al PARTNER, whose fortune is at stake no" DC
is claimed tnat ne has been active IN '"o
<,a,.oss Kershaw's Titianesque face showed hne'
- hv a terrible forty-eight hours strain ies'
s.rt d. W. Irwin. of the bank ana OF tho urn VI
cen. c,osn g. Co.. was the most determined look
;no man of the lot Cashier De"af' oi 'Io 0"nn'
, ns aavsr.l of the directors were present. ms
anu ,;.n heoan inst as soon as Wiltshire got of
C;,c;nuati train at the foot Of Lake-st. ana
.,r;oa .no 20 the bank. He was accom- panied by
,.oLino smooth-faceG young fellow, whose
- hinged As clerks coats sometimes 90
81, ..av are hurrying to bank to make deposits
w. ,ir at once entered tho bank and the directors
-.o,n where the others were. The scene presented
III MT soon he forge tten. kershaw was Dusy
sr;,;no. His face was haggard, but he looked
hrav.. Kershaw, everybody calls lovaoie onar
o.er Int he is plainly one Of those lovabe charac-
ters that can grow grand IN peril. No mortar ever
boS nrobsbIy in any financial crisis more interests
,"..;,c nm him Calm men, unmaginative men,
men who disiain exaggeration, say that the great
,rhsot market of the orld was on the verge OF
n.r;c this morning, and that kershaws failure
roud have started it. Eggleston's face was
.trdv. too The perspration dropped from his
brow ana his great red beard was all awry
Wiltshire at s o'clock left the bank and walked
IN be corner of Dearborn and Monroe sts''where he
met the young fellow who bad accompanied Dlm on
the tram. and who had before this et the bank for
the Richeleu Hotel The young fellows pockets
bulped again. The two entered the bank. and in
thi ty minutes more the council was over.
Kershaw had the money to pay his differences
and 70 margin 10 the market. He would go through
all right If he was not pounced upon and called
unmercifully by the wreckers The crowd in the
offices and on the street looked savage at this
worb. Wreckers were not popular this morning.
speculators and their brokers knew when they went
home last night that disastro2Sand Irresistible
panic that would sweep away pf>ces and fortunes
at the san momert was only to be ayerted to-day
nv c. j. Kershaw g. Co. standing up and paying all
the enormous demands that would be made upon
them. Last night the firm was out OF money. with
demands for $3.50 900 then in the office that they
could not meet. 1t was therefore grateful sound
10 the Street when Kersbaw, at 8 o'clock, hurried
into his office and annodncei that he had money
enough in the bank at that hour to pay all that he
owed and 10 margin his trades down to the market
and below It, The announcement went from lip to
lin and from Off &c to Office. Smiles broke upon
faces that were dull and heavy with the excite
ment the fatigue aud the anxiety of night full oil
suspense Kersfaw, when be made the announce
ment believed that he was promising just wfat he
could fulfil. Events proved tnat he couldn't ful-
fill them. however. He had just hurried from the
American Exchange National Bank, where he had
held since o'clock council with his partners
President Irwin, and with Wiltshire, OF Cincinnati
and here 100000 had been placed to his credit
He felt as if the day was saved and so did the
street Immediately after the opening OF the Board
of Trade the secretary raped for silence 1t was
a difticnlt thing to obtain. But when he finally
%reSsiisd' co. n' f'A0 '''' ''S w
GENTLEMEN. We are prepared to pay al onr clearing
h0u'o u'"'' sN''' @"" G. ]. KKRsHAw Co.
Ayel of delight broke out ut this and the CALLER
les whIch were crowded to suhOcation by ladies.
responded by the waving OF handkerchlefs. he
few announcements Of several small failures that
f09%ea dia not cOuh SeSs 9eSss wsle Co.. o. aud
Orr. Wheat advanced at once cent 10 90 cents
for July. The panic was over Temporarily. armour
Was large buyer of wheat at the opening and at
various other hours daring the day when the
market looked as if breaking into panic There
naturally Iall aftet the inst exnitatlon over
July dropped to "a cents. Murry, Nelson a. Co..
became large sellers OF wheat and IT was feared 1t
was for some OF the clique houses July even Ieil 10
73 cents and littl under
Then came Ih, announcement of failures. That
OF B. J. McClcary was the only one OF Importance.
He las been rather broker and scalper thau COM
mission man and has hal excellent standing. His
employment by the clique as broker has brought
about his disaster now. AS o'clock approached
the crowd know that The most dangerous moment
of the day was at hand. The clearing sheets
needed TO be in and the differences of the day he
fore settled. Immediately after i o'clock came
tile announcement of another batch of suspensions.
This time here were t. r. Balding Co.. Crosby
& Co.. aud Pickering & Co. Grossly has been rich
man in the market for years. and the trade sup
posed be was impregnable Then at 1880 came The
announcement of the suspension OF N. Is. Crafts &
Co.. and NJ. S. Robinson Il Co., the latter presum-
ably substantial house.
The crowd thought the crisis was passed at /
O'clock, when the clearing sheets were IN but here
there another terrible disappontiGent G. j.
Kershaw Co.'S account at the American Ex-
change Bank, amounting to $500, 900 had been
compl' cated in some way by Rosented & Co. The
latter learning that Wiltshire. of Cincinnati was
ia The city, and that he had taken care of Kershaw
Co., while he had allowed them To 90 to the
wall, hurried to their lawyers. Garnishee papers
We're procured and the money to kcIshaw Co y,
credit at the bank was attached. This occurred
while all at the Board of Trade were in fancied
security. 1t was not until kersbaws partner,
Dewar, who had taken check Tor $2 70, 900 for
tiicates, failed to return that there any ink
ling of trouble. At noon the checks had not
turned and there was CONSERVATION. 1t began to
leak out on the floor, and July wheat dropped to
7O12 cents. Trading was suspended. The hands Of
the clock passed the noon hour and kershaw'e
check had not arrived. Contrary TO the rule, ihe
clearing hodr was extended i've minutes. Still no
certified check Then the official announcement
was issued that Kershaw q Co. had failed to 90
through. The president of the board directed that
the announcement be not mace from the gallery.
1t simply increased the panic.
Tie notice OF failures from the clearing house
was posted at 1918 There was frightfnl sense
Of depression when it was seen that Kershaw's
nsme wac on the l.st. The list was as follows: b.
J. McCleary & Co., j. II. Yourt Il Co., T. L. Bald
ing g. Co., =. ID. Eldiidge d Co., Crosby & Co.. VI.
j.. Crafts Il Co., NJ. :. Robinson & Co., Pickering